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7.31.2009

My New Manifesto & an Epiphany {of sorts}

Boy, is that a clunky title or what? Wait! Don't answer that. I hoped the {of sorts} might lighten the load a bit, but probably not. Moving right along...

Every few days I say to myself, "Self, you need to work on your scrapbooks." Usually with one or more of the following results:

1) I walk into my craft room, scream in terror at the mounds of junk everywhere, turn tail and RUN. Or,

2) Start fiddling with a set of pictures, get sorta together and a little bit started (yet not in the groove), then get distracted. Leave. Pile junk on top of barely begun project.

3) Repeat options 1 and 2.

With my more fully developed blogging habits these last couple of years my scrapbooking habits went to the back burner. I think they are almost burnt. And stinky.

That hurts my heart.

Then I forget about it for a while until I see Annelise sit down and peruse our family albums. She soaks them up! That nudges me back toward my craft room and my Cropper Hopper.

The other day I tried to shake off the guilt, clean off a small work space at my table and uncover the project I started well over a few months ago. An 8x8 album of our trip to Maine. In 2007. I know. I gathered the pictures, put them in order, started cropping, choosing papers, etc. Before too long I found my long lost scrapbooking groove.

Welcome back honey, I've missed you.

As I was journaling I got a little stumped trying to remember details, so I went to my blog. This cracked me up and also struck me as slightly absurd. Hello, I've blogged about our trip, posted pictures, then even published my blog last year as a Blurb book,--why am I cutting papers, cropping pictures and getting ink and adhesive all over my fingers over something that has been pretty much covered? Cue dead horse beating any minute now.

Well, for posterity. A tangible posterity. (Even though I have a blog book too?!!?) Well...yeah.

I also plan to scrapbook our DC trip, my Savannah trip with my girlfriends, maybe Disney, along with normal life events. Even though the thought of all my pictures whispering to me from the depths of my Cropper Hopper and those trapped in my computer makes me hyperventilate, I don't want to let scrapbooking go. I don't. I won't.

Therefore I bring you my new scrapbooking manifesto:

I will give myself permission to march to my own scrapbooking drummer. I will not succumb to guilt. I will accept that getting pictures into an album with minimum frou frou is more important than complicated layouts with lots of the latest embellishments (not that I have anything against bling and pizzazz, hello, I'm a Texan and a girl). Telling the story through pictures and journaling is the most important part of this hobby, I will remember that. I will scrapbook what makes me happy. I will accept that I can not scrapbook everything. I will let go of perfection. I will try to give myself freedom to scrapbook out of chronological order. That one is a doozie.

Maybe I should print that out and put it next to my craft table. Well...it might get lost. Rats.

I had an epiphany of sorts as I was searching my blog to review my Mainevacation & race report posts. Well, actually two of them. It was refreshing to read back over my thoughts (narcissistic much?) and your comments. It warmed my heart to see many of you who comment now were commenting in 2007. Wow. Thank you for that. Blogging truly is about relationships and I appreciate you taking the time not only to read my rambly ambly blog, but also leave a comment when you can. Thanks for sticking with me and my blog. I know that blogging takes time, both on the posting side and on the reading/commenting side. I also know that blogging, like most things in life, ebbs and flows. I don't expect comments, but I do sincerely appreciate them. So, again, thank you, my friends. My other epiphany was more of a ,"Hmmm...I wonder if I was a better blogger back in 2007. Has my voice changed? Do I still bring some funny? Am I reflecting the realest (my word) slice of my life and well, the realest me?" I don't know. I hope so.

How do you reconcile blogging and scrapbooking, or do you? What is your creative manifesto? Is it possible to scrapbook out of chronological order? Really? Any blogging epiphanies lately? (Epiphany is just so fun to say and to type, who knew?)

I don't scrapbook. I never have. It does not interest me in the least. I do want to make sure I print pictures and stick them in a basic album, but that is it. My kids will grow up knowing me and will understand that scrapbooking was not my thing.

As for blogging epiphanies, I have finally accepted that I will post when I post. If I lose readers, so be it. I don't have any obligations to my readers after all. Of course I want to say interesting things and have lots of comments, but that is not what I'm about. I think.

I can totally relate to this post, as I dropped scrapbooking the moment I started blogging. This brings immediate gratification and feedback, and covers so much more of our lives. I haven't turned my blog into books yet, but that's my plan. It does hurt my heart though when the kids flip through their scrapbbooks, because they love them so much.

I've been reading you for a long time and you definitely still bring the funny. There's definitely and ebb and flow with blog friendships, but the ones that last are the best!

First, yes, you still bring the funny and the real. Of course I don't know the real you in person but after reading your blog for the last year or more I can honestly say I'd love to know you in real life. I look forward to every Marathon Bird post and am on the borderline of a stalker :). You're in my top 5 of deserted island blogs.

I was a big, HUGE scrapbooker at one time and was a CM consultant for a while, too. I miss it so much. I really want to grab a friend and go on a weekend retreat so that I'll get back into it. I know that's all it will take.

I'm so over scrapbooking. Love my Mac, which publishes my own albums, like Shutterfly. I haven't published any blogging stuff, yet, but I think I'll use them as my journaling when I get caught up on my albums.

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